you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you...

Restore us again, O God our Saviour … will

you not revive us again, that your people

may rejoice in you? Show us your unfailing

love, O LORD, and grant us your salvation.

…taken from Psalm 85:5-7

Maybe we do recognise something is wrong,

but we misdiagnose the reasons

and blame culture or society…

Thesis:

“We must gather … a

deeper impression of our

own responsibility … the

great obstacles to the

revival of God’s work are,

no doubt, to be

sought in the Church…”

Sprague p.661832

Thesis:

“He is not feltamong His people,

and what is worse,

we don’t care … we

must cultivate a holy

dissatisfaction with

our desperate

condition”

B H Edwards

“God bending down to

the dying embers of a

fire just about to go

out, and breathing

into it until it

bursts into flames”

Christmas EvansWales 1820’s

“Days of heaven upon

earth ... It is God coming

near His people a

visitation of His Spirit,

giving them

a glance of His

everlasting glory…”

J Edwards,cited MLJ, p.103-4

“a community saturated with

God … the going out of God

among His people … in

revival the fear of God lays

hold upon a community

moving men and women -

who up until now have had

no concern for spiritual

things – to seek after God…”

Duncan Campbell,Lewes 1952

“…a remarkable increase in the

spiritual life of a large number of

God’s people, accompanied by

an awesome awareness of the

presence of God, intensity of

prayer and praise, a deep

conviction of sin with a

passionate longing for holiness,

and unusual effectiveness in

evangelism, leading to the

salvation of many unbelievers.”

B H Edwards

“… there is an

intensification of

elements that are

present in the ‘normal’

life of the Church.

Everything is done at a

different level”.

B H Edwards

“My mission is first to the

Churches. When the

Churches are aroused to

their duty, men of the

world will be swept into

the kingdom. A whole

Church on its knees is

irresistible”

Evan RobertsWales, 1904

In the run up to a Revival:

Often an ignorance of God’s so dealing with His

Church throughout history… or cynicism towards

them … a spirit of worldliness among professing

Christians … who seem to think of nothing else

but the acquisition of wealth … worldly promotion

… and leading a fashionable life…

WB Sprague(p.49-50)


A spiritual weakness

among Church leaders.

1742, Cambuslang.

McCullough, the ale-

minister.


“We had been praying for and expecting some

such precious blessing, but were taken by

surprise, so sudden, powerful and extraordinary

were the manifestations of the Spirit’s presence”

Archibald Robinson,Ulster 1859

“We prayed for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit

upon ourselves and upon the surrounding

country. This was the one great burden and

object of our prayers. We held right to this one

thing … we kept right on praying

until the power came …”

James McQuillan,Ulster 1857-8


Ulster 1859,

an estimated 100,000

people converted


“The meetings became marked by a deeper

outgoing of the soul to God in prayer than ever,

and a passionately expressed desire for the

salvation of men was a dominant feature.

Towards the close of 1906, there were

indications that the LORD was about to move in

our midst once more…

Joseph Kemp,Edinburgh. 1904/5


“ … the attendees at the 7am prayer meeting on

the Lord’s Day increased, and the meetings

were marked by a deep spirit of prayer. This

was followed up by the same spirit [of prayer] in

the week night meetings…”

Joseph Kemp,Edinburgh. 1904/5


“When God intends a great

mercy for His people, the first

thing He does is set them

praying”

Matthew HenryComment on Zech.12:10


During Revival:

Revival begins with a vision, and with a

new sense of Jesus Christ … It begins with

the revelation of Jesus Christ Himself, and

a sense of the nearness of the Master”

Douglas BrownSpeaking at Keswick Convention, 1922.

“…within a matter of days, the whole

neighbourhood was awakened to spiritual and

eternal realities. Work was largely set aside as

people became concerned with their own

salvation, of the salvation of friends and

neighbours. In homes, barns, loom sheds, by

the roadside or the peat stack, men could be

found calling on God”.

Duncan Campbell,Barvas, 1949

During Revival:

“…there was nothing humanly

speaking to account for what

happened. Quite suddenly,

upon one and another came

an overwhelming sense of

the reality of the awfulness of

the Presence, and of eternal

things. Life, death and

eternity seemed suddenly

laid bare”.Joseph Kemp,

1905, Charlotte Chapel, Edinburgh

During Revival:

The prayer continues…

“It was a Pentecost season

indeed. Sometimes whole

nights were spent in prayer.

Often we would be filled,

overwhelmed with the Divine

Presence, crying out: ‘Will

God indeed dwell with man

on earth? How dreadful is

this place, it is none other

than the house of God, the

Gate of Heaven!’ ”cited in John Gillies

Memoir of George Whitefield, p.34

During Revival:

“…as we were continuing in

prayer the power of God came

mightily upon us, insomuch

that many cried out for

exceeding joy, and many

fell to the ground”Journal of John Wesley

31st December, 1739

During Revival:

“What can I say about our

prayer meetings? They

used to begin at 7.00 am,

but that was felt to be far

too late in the day for the

great business that had to

be transacted before the

throne of grace...

During Revival:

… The meetings now begin

at 6.00 and go on for

almost 7 days a week, with

occasional intervals to

attend to household duties,

and bodily substance.

Some of you who are

strangers here may smile,

many of us did, but we do

not smile now …

During Revival:

… It is that continuous,

persevering, God-

honouring, weekly

campaign of prayer that

has moved the mighty

hand of God to pour upon

this favoured people the

blessings of His grace in

such rich abundance.

During Revival:

And if ever you should be

asked the secret of this

Church’s great spiritual

prosperity, you can tell

them of the prayer

meeting.”

Joseph Kemp,1905, Charlotte Chapel

During Revival:

Holiness

During Revival:

All things here below

vanished and there

appeared to be nothing of

any considerable

importance to me but the

holiness of heart and life

and the conversion of the

heathen to God …

During Revival:

All my cares, fears and

desires which might be

said to be of a worldly

nature, disappeared … I

exceedingly longed that

God would get himself a

Name among the

heathen.”

David Brainerd.

“Above all, he is faithful to His God and to

his conscience; he cannot be bought or

bribed; his strength is a character sanctified

by communion with the Invisible”

Rev. T Pritchard, on Evan RobertsN. Wales Guardian, 14/04/1905

During Revival:

“Lord, make me as holy

as a saved sinner can be”

Robert Murray McCheyneDundee, 1839

During Revival:

Conviction of sin

“…as prayer continued, a spirit of heaviness

and sorrow for sin came down upon the

congregation … someone began to weep and

soon all were weeping. Man after man would

arise and confess His sin, breaking down and

weeping … in perfect agony of conviction. ”

Blair & Hunt,The Korean Pentecost, 1907

During Revival:

“…there was nothing to be

heard from one end of the

town to the other, but the

cries and groans of people

in distress of soul”

Thomas Charles,Bala, North Wales, October 1791

During Revival:

“I find a good many people

under the deepest exercise

of soul, crying out most

bitterly by reason of their

unbelief and their sin …

During Revival:

not so much from fear of

punishment, as from a

sense of the dishonour

done to God. Some

suffered such agony they

would faint under the

burden”

John Hamilton,Cambuslang, 1742

During Revival:

“…the awful presence of God brought a wave of

conviction of sin, that caused even mature

Christians to feel their sinfulness, bringing

groans of distress and prayers of repentance

from the unconverted. Strong men were bowed

under the weight of sin, and cries for mercy were

mingled with shouts of joy from others who had

been raised from death to life”

Duncan Campbell,1949, Lewis.

During Revival:

“they rejoice in Jesus Christ.

The purest joy in the world is

joy in Jesus Christ. When

the Spirit is poured down,

His people get very near and

clear views of the Lord

Jesus …

During Revival:

They taste that the Lord is

gracious, His blood and

righteousness appear very

dear to their soul. They sit

under His shadow with

delight, and lean on Him as

their Beloved …”

Robert Murray McCheyneSermon: The Cry for Revival

During Revival:

“the town seemed so full

of the presence of God …

it was never so full of

love, nor of joy … and yet

so full of distress as it

was then”

Jonathan Edwards,Northampton, 1735

During Revival:

http://web.ukonline.co.uk/freegrace/library/Edwards/edwardsres.html

“the outbursts of the joy of salvation

were more powerful than previous

revivals”

at Beddgelert,Wales, 1817

During Revival:

Priority of Worship

“The whole town and neighbourhood was

aroused. Many did not retire the first night at

all, and for several days, great numbers were

unable to attend their usual vocations, but gave

themselves unceasingly to the study of the

Scriptures, singing and prayer. And for the first

month, with about 3 exceptions, I did not get to

bed before dawn, such was the anxiety of the

people for pastoral instruction and consolation.

James McQuillanUlster 1859

During Revival:

“…the revival goes on, and I

cannot leave the building until

midnight, and sometimes 1

o’clock in the morning. I have

often closed the service

several times, and yet it would

break out again, quite beyond

the control of human power”

Joseph Jenkins,Wales, 1904

During Revival:

“The service began on Sunday 27th February,

and didn’t close until the following Friday morning”

1814, Tuckingmill, Cornwall

During Revival:

“The service began on Sunday 27th February,

and didn’t close until the following Friday morning”

1814, Tuckingmill, Cornwall

During Revival:

‘In revival, time doesn’t matter’ Duncan Campbell

Worship in the manifest

presence of God

During Revival:

“It pleased God to bring

an awfully solemn sense

of divine things over the

minds of men … there is

far more solemnity in the

house of God”

Robert Murray McCheyne,1839, Dundee

“the thing most remarkable

was the spiritual glory of

the solemnity … the

profound reverence that

overspread every

countenance”

Of a Holy Communion seasonCambuslang, 1742

During Revival:

“the whole place was at that moment so awful with

the glory of God – and one uses the word ‘awful’

deliberately - the holy presence of God was

so manifest. The preacher himself was

overwhelmed and had to withdraw…”

Rhys Bevan Jones,Anglesey, 1904

During Revival:

“The Churches were

full and the solemnity

of these services was

awe-inspiring”

Duncan Campbell,Lewis 1934

During Revival:

“…perhaps the most

outstanding feature in

this part of Harris was

the awe-inspiring

presence of God”

Duncan Campbell,Harris, 1949

During Revival:

“How terrible is

this place! It is too

terrible for me, my

flesh is too weak

to bear this

weight of glory”

David Morgan,1859, Wales

During Revival:

“The usual time for the dismissal came, but

they were heedless about the hour of the night.

The day brightened the heavens, the morning

star was succeeded by the rising sun, but still

they remained, praying, praising the Lord”

James McQuillanUlster, 1859

During Revival:

“…when the Holy Ghost comes

in power, more will happen in

an hour than will happen in

fifty or even a hundred years

as a result of your exertions

and mine …”

MLJ p.210

During Revival:

“God has seemed to go out of His usual way in

the quickness of His work, and in the swift

progress made by the Holy Spirit in His

operations in the hearts of people. It is

wonderful that persons should be so suddenly,

yet so greatly changed … in a very little time,

the former things have passed away and all

things have been made new”.

Jonathan EdwardsNew Hampshire, 1740’s

During Revival:

Renewed confidence in the

Gospel, and in the Scriptures

as the Word of God

“The uninhibited and compelling urge to

preach the Gospel was a basic characteristic

of all those involved, whatever other gifts they

may bring…each felt deeply the absolute

priority and unique authority of preaching in the

Power of the Holy Spirit.

Brian H EdwardsOn the 18th Century Awakening

During Revival:

At four (in the afternoon) I

hastened to Kingswood. At a

moderate computation there

were about 10,000 people to

hear me… all was hush when I

began, and God enabled me

to preach for an hour with

great power …The fire is

kindled in this country, and all

the devils of hell shall not be

able to quench it”

Whitefield’s Journal, Sunday 25th February, 1739

During Revival:

“I have observed at such times

an awful and breathless

stillness pervading the

assembly, each hearer

bent forward in the posture

of rapt attention”

Robert Murray McCheyne1839, Dundee

During Revival:

But not just in preaching:

In all companies … on whatever occasions persons

meet together, Christ was to be heard of … our

young people were wont to spend time in telling of

the excellency of the dying love of Jesus Christ,

the glory of the way of salvation, the wonderful

free and sovereign grace of God, His glorious work

in the conversion of the soul, and the truth and

certainty of the great things of God’s Word”

Jonathan Edwards, Narrative, p.14

During Revival:

Evangelism &

Church Growth

“the fearful bending of judgement day came into

my mind, and I was filled with compassion for

those who must bend at that judgement, and I

wept. Following that, the salvation of the human

soul was solemnly pressed upon me. I felt

ablaze with the desire to go through the length

and breadth of Wales to tell of the Saviour, and

had it been possible, I was willing

to pay God for the privilege of doing so…”

Evan Roberts,Wales 1904

During Revival:

“It is an easy and delightful

thing to preach the gospel

here in these days… Divine

truths have their own infinite

weight and importance in the

minds of the people”.

Thomas Charles,Bala, North Wales, October 1791

During Revival:

Great Awakening (Jonathan Edwards, 1734):

estimated 25,000 from New Hampshire

1859 Welsh revival: membership in

WCM rose by 36,000

During Revival:

1904 Welsh revival: membership

in WCM rose by 24,000

(3rd Feb.1905, reported in North Wales Guardianthat Church membership had risen by 74,000 in a year

and some estimate that 160,000+ added 1904-6)

During Revival:

The most conservative estimate on

1859 Ulster revival is 100,000

During Revival:

West Yorkshire, 1794 (revival under John Moon &

Alexander Mather in Sheffield), Methodist circuit

saw attendance rise by 2,000

(with reports of hundreds being converted in a single meeting)

During Revival:

1799, Penzance, Methodist recorded show a

500% increase in membership

St. Ives, saw church membership rise by 300%

During Revival:

1814: Redruth, 5,000 in a few weeks

Tuckingmill, 2,000 converted in a single

week-long meeting which began,

Sunday 27th Feb. 1814.

During Revival:

1830: Midlands, under James Caughy.

Liverpool saw church attendance rise by 12,000

with similar figures for Nottingham (inc. William Booth), Huddersfield, Goole, Sheffield, York, Chesterfield, Birmingham

During Revival:

1907, Edinburgh, Joseph Kemp,

membership

rises from 35 to 609

During Revival:

1921, East Coast (Lowestoft),

estimated 30% of the region converted

in 2 weeks.

During Revival:

Giving

“…a thank offering was made among God’s

people for His signal mercies. The times

were hard, and my people were far from

wealthy, yet the sum contributed was £71.

This was devoted to missionary purposes…”

Robert Murray McCheyne1839, Edinburgh

(c.£30,000)

During Revival:

“…the creation of the new spirit of Christian

liberality; a forward movement of a philanthropic

and missionary enterprise, of which Sabbath

Schools, the Orphan Society; the China and

Zenana Missions were lasting fruits…”

cited by I K Paisley,The ’59 Revival

During Revival:

Persecution

“at Marylebone I was pushed from my pulpit,

attacked with a sword, one pelted me with

excrement, and another climbed a nearby

tree and shamefully exposed his

nakedness…”

George Whitefield

During Revival:

“[Whitefield has been called] a vagrant

enthusiast, a limb of the anti-Christ … there are

such lies, slanders and ridiculous stories that

have been spread about to prejudice people

against the work of God”

James Robe,Cambuslang, 1742

During Revival:

Impact on Society…

Impact on Society:

1859: Maze Racecourse attendance, less than

500, because thousands attending the

preaching in Comber, Co. Down.

Homes that I have had under observation for

some time have undergone a complete

transformation by the parents having been

brought to a better life through the Revival.

The children throughout my district are kept

in a much more clean condition, and it can

be confidently said that in my line,

things are decidedly slack.

Impact on Society:

A couple of cases that I was visiting, and in

which I thought I should have to prosecute, it

is no longer necessary to watch, owing to the

improvement brought about by the

conversion of [the parent(s)]…

NSPCC worker Wales 1906cited in ‘Rent Heavens’, RB Evans p.67

Impact on Society:

“the revival has left the taverns vocal

with lonely grumblers”

James Caughy1830 Birmingham

Impact on Society:

Convictions for drunkenness in

Glamorgan, released by Chief

Constable of Cardiff:

1902: 9298

1903: 10528

1904: 11282

1905: 8164

1906: 5490

1907: 5615

“The decrease in drunkenness has undoubtedly been most marked where the revivalists have had the greatest following”

Impact on Society:

Impact on Church

(militant)…

Impact on Church (militant):

“I have gathered from

enquiry that not one in

every 50 of those who

assumed a profession of

religion … has relapsed

into the world”

Thomas Jones,1859 Wales

“On every occasion care was taken to instruct

the people in the true and unchangeable

principles of religion. They are cautioned against

resting in a mere outward religion. They are told

that mere excitement is not conversion, and that

an awakening of the conscience to a sense of

guilt and danger doesn’t always result in a

change of heart …”

Thomas Jones,1859 Wales


“The Church is most indebted to revivals for

the increase of both her numbers and her

graces … in many cases the Church was barely

in existence, and has been saved not only

from total extinction, but has been enlarged by

great accessions to its numbers and influence

…


… how much is the standard of Christian

character, of humility, of zeal, of devotion, of

everything that pertains to practical godliness,

yet to be elevated in consequence of these

glorious effusions of the Holy Ghost! What an

immense number will have been brought to the

table of the Lord, and will have been enlisted

actively in His service …


… and will count it an honour to wear

themselves out in His cause, who, but for

revivals of religion, might have continued to

turn their backs upon the Saviour, and even

have openly opposed the interests

of His kingdom”

WB Sprague p.207


Impact on Church

(triumphant)…

Impact on Church (triumphant):

Revivals minister directly to the

joy of heavenly inhabitants…




1. Saints who died before their family

became Christians





became Christians

2. Angelic rejoicing





became Christians

2. Angelic rejoicing

3. The LORD God Almighty Himself

“The Father is glorified in the display of that love

and wisdom in which the plan of

redemption originated…

the Son is glorified in the honour which hereby

comes to his mediatorial work, and especially

the efficacy which is thus proved to belong

to His atoning blood;

“…the Holy Ghost is glorified in the effectual

energy of his operation on the heart: in

changing stone to flesh, in new-creating the

whole man. Here is power, wisdom, mercy,

faithfulness, holiness, every attribute of God

brought out in a living, I had almost

said, palpable form…

“…if Jehovah rejoices in his own glory, and if that

glory is illustrated in the conversion of even a

single soul, what shall be said of his rejoicing in

view of a revival of religion, much more of all the

revivals which will have taken place when the

whole number of the ransomed of the Lord shall

be gathered home”

WB Sprague p.217

you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you...

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